Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording method and a recording apparatus.
Description of the Related Art
Inkjet recording apparatuses are in widespread use as, for example, computer-related output equipment because of their low running costs, potential for downsizing, and ease of adaptation to the recording of color images using inks in different colors. In recent years, recording apparatuses that allow rapid and high-quality output of images regardless of the kind of recording paper are in demand. Rapid and high-quality output of images requires reducing the occurrence of defects in images, such as feathering, a defect characterized by ink spreading along the fibers of recording paper.
A proposed solution to this problem is a transfer recording apparatus that incorporates an intermediate transfer body (U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,156, U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,256, and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-92849). The operation of a transfer recording apparatus starts with forming a primary image on an intermediate transfer body using an inkjet recording apparatus. The primary image is then dried on the transfer body and transferred to recording paper to form a secondary image. Methods based on the use of this type of recording apparatus, in which a primary image is dried on a transfer body, are unlikely to cause feathering defects that would prevent rapid and high-quality output of images. These methods, however, have some problems that interfere with successful formation of images, such as incomplete image transfer and divided transfer of images to the intermediate transfer body and the recording paper caused by internal separation of the images. An example of a disclosed solution to this problem is a method that includes applying, to an ink image formed beforehand, a second material that contains a water-soluble polymer (Japanese Patent No. 4834300).